The Massachusetts Gaming Commission received scoping surveys from 29 different entities seeking legal MA sports betting licensure.
The deadline to submit those surveys, a required pre-requisite to MA sports betting applications, was Monday at 5 p.m.
The MGC hopes to launch retail sports betting in late January before the Super Bowl. Next, online sports betting would launch in early March, prior to the NCAA Tournament.
Sports betting applications must be submitted to the MGC by Nov. 21 at 2 p.m.
List of MA sports betting entities
The MGC can award up to 15 online sports betting licenses in the state. That includes up to seven untethered online sports betting licenses.
MA sports betting mobile Category 3
Twenty-three of those 29 scoping surveys (including 18 from potential operators) were from entities seeking Category 3 (untethered online) licensure.
- Bally Bet
- bet365
- Betfred
- BetMGM
- Betr
- BetRivers
- Betway
- BuddyBet
- Caesars Sportsbook
- Clutchbet
- DraftKings
- Easywin
- Fanatics
- FanDuel Sportsbook
- Fanlogic (unregulated offshore)
- MaximBet
- Mohegan Digital
- Novibet
- Penn Sports Interactive
- PointsBet
- Underdog Sports Wagering
- Unibet
- WynnBet
MA Sports Betting Retail Category 1
There were three Category 1 (retail, up to two online skins each) submissions.
- Encore Boston Harbor (Wynn)
- MGM Springfield (BetMGM)
- Plainridge Park Casino (Barstool Sportsbook)
MA sports betting racetrack Category 2
There were also three Category 2 (racetrack, one online skin each) submissions.
- Raynham Park
- Suffolk Downs
- Commonwealth Equine and Agricultural Center/Great Meadowbrook Farm
The projected launch date of Category 2 licenses is still TBD.
MA Gaming Commission met Thursday
The MA Gaming Commission made little progress during a six-plus hour meeting on Thursday.
Pushback continued on the “accelerated” timeline, this time involving operators having a short window to submit applications, which could cause them to make mistakes.
“We spent an hour talking about the applicants who aren’t getting these right,” MGC chair Cathy Judd-Stein said.
There need to be amendments to some application regulations. No vote on general sports betting application requirements, standards and procedures took place.
Category 3 cutdown could take time
Last week, the MGC acknowledged it could take a lot of time to narrow down the applicants to the seven online, untethered sports betting licenses.
Some introduced a potential numerical scoring system to reach the final seven. As a result, at least one commissioner was skeptical of doing a deep dive on every applicant.
“I do understand doing a full deep dive on applicants who might never rise to those top seven is a waste of resources for the commonwealth,” MGC commissioner Jordan Maynard said.
